Donte Kanarian, 6, carries flags Thursday afternoon at the Colfax Township Cemetery. A group of about 30 to 40, including Boy Scouts, Venture Scouts, Bad Axe High School students and area veterans, met to distribute flags among the graves of veterans. (Pamela Meyer Schantz/for the Daily Tribune) less

Donte Kanarian, 6, carries flags Thursday afternoon at the Colfax Township Cemetery. A group of about 30 to 40, including Boy Scouts, Venture Scouts, Bad Axe High School students and area veterans, met to ... more

UPPER THUMB — Red, white and blue tributes soon will be held all over the area, with events starting on Sunday and continuing on Memorial Day Monday.

Residents and visitors interested in honoring those who have served our country have a variety of Memorial Day events to choose from during the upcoming holiday weekend.

Bad Axe: Bad Axe, Kinde, Port Austin VFW Post 116 will host a Memorial Day Parade at 10 a.m. Monday. Line up will start at 9:30 a.m. on Whitelam Street and will travel to the Bad Axe Junior High. There is a service afterward at the flag pole in Colfax Cemetery in Bad Axe. People are encouraged to participate in the parade by dressing in patriotic attire. All kids who participate in the parade will receive a Presidential coin. Bicycles and pets are welcome.

Bay Port: A Memorial Day Service will be held at 9:30 a.m. at the Methodist Church in town.

Caseville: The Blessing of the Fleet will be held at 9:30 a.m. at the harbor Monday. Following that ceremony, there will be a Memorial Day Ceremony at 10:30 a.m. at the Caseville Township Cemetery. The ceremony will feature the American Legion and music from the Caseville High School band.

Champagne Funeral Chapel will be having its annual Memorial Day Service at noon, Monday, Memorial Day at the funeral home in Caseville.

Cass City: A Memorial Day Parade will be held from 10 a.m. to noon Monday in Cass City. Contact Dee Mulligan (989) 872-4618.

Elkton: A Memorial Day Service will begin at 10 a.m. Monday at Riverside Cemetery by Elkton VFW Post 6013. The speaker is the Rev. Reggie Courliss.

Grant Township: 70th annual Grant Cemetery Memorial Day Service at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Grant Cemetery in Grant Township. The keynote speaker for the day will be Michigan State Representative Terry Brown. Special musical will be provided by the Community Choir, a bag piper and the Owendale Gagetown High School Band. For additional information, contact Brenda Kretzschmer at (989) 678-4482.

Harbor Beach: A Memorial Day Parade and VFW Service will begin at 10 a.m. Monday in downtown Harbor Beach. Contact Dennis Essenmacher at (989) 864-3124.

Lighthouse County Park: Boy Scouts from Troop #211, of New Baltimore, will perform a patriotic and moving Flag Retiring Ceremony at 7 p.m. Sunday. Flags to be retired can be brought to the office at Lighthouse County Park between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. this week. Flags also may be brought to Lot #125, near the weather station, prior to the ceremony on Sunday.

On Monday, the Pointe aux Barques Lighthouse Society, in conjunction with the Station Harbor Beach U.S. Coast Guard, will host the third annual Surfmen Flag Raising Ceremony at 11 a.m. in Lighthouse County Park. Participants include Coast Guard crewmen and Boy Scouts from Troop #211.

The Rev. Paula Timm will give the devotional with ceremonial music provided by trumpeter Rachel Woodward of Harbor Beach.

Refreshments will be served following the ceremony. The lighthouse and museum will be open for viewing, and the Museum Gift Shop also will be open with many new items for the 2009 season.

Jackie Howard, author of Thumb Pointed Fingers, a story of the Sparling family murders, will be available from 1 to 4 p.m. to sign copies of her book and answer questions.

Harpist Mary Barnes also will be at Monday’s event to serenade visitors.

Pigeon: Following the service in Bay Port, the local American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars will host a Memorial Day Parade in Pigeon, starting at 11 a.m. at the municipal parking lot, and ending with a service outside the VFW hall, located on South Main Street. If it rains, the service will be held inside the VFW Hall in Pigeon.

Port Austin: The American Legion Memorial Day Parade and ceremony begins at 11:30 a.m. Monday at the Garfield Inn for the start of the Memorial Day procession down Lake Street and ending at Veteran’s Waterfront Park in Port Austin. Service begins at Veteran’s Memorial Park upon their arrival. Call Shelly Koth at (989) 738-7600.

Port Hope: A Memorial Day Parade will start at 10 a.m. at the bank Monday in downtown Port Hope. Prior to the parade, a Memorial Day service will be held at 9 a.m. at New River Cemetery, which is located between Port Austin and Huron City, and at 9:30 a.m. at Lighthouse County Park.

Ruth: A Memorial Day Parade featuring the VFW #5740, Ubly veterans and the Ubly band will take place at 10:30 a.m. at the monument in downtown Ruth. This listing is changed from Tuesday’s paper.